


Change of Heart

by Aceofstars16



Series: Hera Adoption AU [2]
Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: AU, Other, adoption au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 13:09:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11783829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aceofstars16/pseuds/Aceofstars16
Summary: The second in my "Hera adopts Ezra" AU. In this fic, Kanan is thrown into the mix, resulting in some changes everyone needs to get used to.





	Change of Heart

**Author's Note:**

> [Tumblr post](http://aceofstars16.tumblr.com/post/161154465983/change-of-heart)

_Was this a mistake_? The question ran through Hera’s mind every day as she saw her newest crew member walking around the Ghost. Kanan wasn’t terrible. He had proven himself on Gorse, and a few times a different personality would poke through. But he was still a huge work in progress and he definitely wasn’t a good influence on Ezra. And because of this, Hera constantly kept an eye on him, even reverting to letting Ezra bunk with her as a way to ease her mind. However, she wasn’t alone in this warriness. Chopper also seemed to be keeping an eye on Ezra – the droid had become strangely protective of the kid. It was a comfort, but it didn’t ease Hera’s mind completely.

As time when on however, Hera started noticing a change in Kanan. It was small at first, but then one day it seemed to change almost instantly. Yes, he still made mistakes, and Hera still kept an eye out for Ezra, but the stress she had been feeling eased a little.

One day she even felt comfortable enough to go on a small recon mission and leave Kanan with Ezra – though she did leave Chopper as well, just in case.

But she hadn’t been expecting the scene in front of her when she returned.

Kanan was sitting on the couch, and Ezra sat in his lap. They were both playing a downloaded vidgame on the table. Ezra’s tongue stuck out and Kanan’s eyes were narrowed in concentration. Then the game beeped and Ezra jumped up in excitement and pumped his fist before high fiving Kanan.

A small smile grew on Hera’s mouth as she watched. Maybe this would work out after all.

* * *

 

This gig was turning out to be much different than Kanan had expected. Before he had seen Hera’s ship, he had been nervous but excited. After all, she _was_ very pretty and working with her every day would be a joy. And seeing her ship has only expounded on that excitement.

But when a kid ran down the ramp to greet her, everything skewed. Obviously, the kid wasn’t hers, but the way her hugged her, he might as well have been. That alone would’ve been weird enough, but there was something else about the kid that worried Kanan. It was something he hadn’t felt in a long time. He had told himself he would never feel it again. But here he was, feeling the Force flowing from someone again, from this kid. Not that he could say anything. He wasn’t a Jedi anymore, it didn’t mean anything. But still, every time he got close to the kid he felt it, and each time it was almost unsettling, as if the Force was trying to talk to him through this kid, which was silly. It was hard to ignore though.

And the Force wasn’t the only unsettling and sometimes downright annoying part. Hera always seemed paranoid if he got too close to Ezra, she was careful to keep Ezra close to her when Kanan was around. Not only that, but the droid continually shocked Kanan, _especially_ around Ezra. It’s as if they expected him to hurt the kid, which of course Kanan would never do, no matter how unsettling Ezra was.

The weeks went on, and Kanan worked hard and tried his best to earn Hera’s full trust. She obviously trusted him with some things, but she was very stubborn. Not that that was wrong, in fact Kanan admired that, but it wasn’t like he couldn’t help out more, especially with Ezra.

It wasn’t until one night when Kanan finally found out why Hera was so protective of Ezra. In hindsight, it wasn’t something he should’ve heard, but as he walked past Hera’s cabin, he heard voices and felt an intense sadness hit his chest – the Force.

Pressing his ear against the door, Kanan could make out Ezra speaking, though it was barely discernable.

“I miss them…”

“I know, Ezra, I know,” Hera’s comforting voice sounded.

There was silence for a few moments, then Ezra spoke again. “Do you think I’ll ever see them again?”

A moment. A sigh.

“I don’t know, Ezra, but I hope so.”

Kanan leaned back from the door, his gaze unfocused as he looked at the floor. Now it made sense. Ezra had lost someone, mostly likely his family. That’s why he was with Hera, and why Hera was so protective. She wanted to protect the kid from any more pain.

Letting out a breath, Kanan shook his head, realizing just how selfish he had been. He had been curious about Ezra, but had never really considered the kid’s position and now that he knew it, he wished he could take away anything he might’ve said that could’ve hurt him. Kanan knew was it was like to lose people close. He didn’t know his family but he had lost his master, and his friends. It wasn’t easy, especially for a kid.

Standing taller, Kanan glanced at the door and silently vowed to try harder to be someone Ezra could trust.


End file.
